Kiwi plant named &#39;51-1785&#39;

ABSTRACT

ABSTRACT A new and distinct kiwi plant of the species  Actinidia chinensis  Planch. is described. The variety results from a controlled pollination using a female  A. chinensis  selection ‘Jing Feng’ (also known as 79-3, and by the HortResearch accession code CK34_01) of unknown parentage, and a male A. chinensis selection CK40_02 of unknown parentage. Both parents (‘Jing Feng’ and CK40_02) are unpatented. The new variety is distinguished by its large globose-shaped fruit with a flat stylar end, golden coloured flesh and tangy sweet taste.

GENUS AND SPECIES OF PLANT CLAIMED

Actinidia chinensis

VARIETY DENOMINATION

Not yet known.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Kiwi plants in cultivation are mainly varieties of A. deliciosa, particularly ‘Hayward’ although some A. chinensis and A. arguta varieties are grown. A. deliciosa and A. chinensis are closely related and varieties of both types have large fruit (˜100 g) with hair on the skin. The main varieties in New Zealand are ‘Hayward’ (A. deliciosa) and ‘Hortl6A’ (A. chinensis). Fruit are usually cut and eaten with a spoon.

All Actinidia species are dioecious, so female varieties have to be interplanted with male pollinizers to ensure fruit production.

A. chinensis vines are deciduous and tend to grow vigorously in spring and summer when rapidly-growing shoots can intertwine and tangle if not managed. Vines do best in a mild warm-temperate climate without late spring or early autumn frosts. They produce consistently heavy crops when grown in well-drained fertile soils and given regular irrigation in dry spells.

A. chinensis flowers in spring (mid October-early December) in New Zealand. Harvest of A. chinensis fruit may occur between April and late-May in New Zealand depending on the selection and location of plantings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a new and distinctive kiwifruit variety having a generally globose shaped fruit with short, soft, silky hair and a golden yellow flesh when ripe. This new variety is designated ‘51-1785’ and is derived from a controlled pollination using a female tetraploid A. chinensis selection ‘Jing Feng’ (also known as 79-3, and by the HortResearch accession code CK34_(—)01) of unknown parentage, and a male tetraploid A. chinensis selection CK40_(—)02 of unknown parentage.

The female parent was introduced to New Zealand as vegetative plant material from Jiangxi, China. The male parent was selected in New Zealand from seedling plants raised from an introduction of seed from China in 1989. Both parents are unpatented.

This new variety was created during the course of a planned plant-breeding program, which was initiated during 1987 in Auckland, New Zealand. The cross was made on 24 Nov. 1994 in Te Puke, New Zealand. Seeds were sown in the winter of 1995 and 64 seedlings from this cross were planted out in the field at HortResearch Te Puke in August 1996. The selection ‘51-1785’ first flowered in November 1997 and fruit was first assessed in May 1998. Four existing kiwifruit vines in a clonal selection trial plot at HortResearch Te Puke were grafted to selection ‘51-1785’ in 1998, using graftwood from the original seedling plant.

The new variety can be asexually reproduced as cuttings or by grafting or budding on to seedling or cutting-grown rootstocks of A. deliciosa or A. chinensis. Trial plantings of grafted plants established at_the Te Puke, Nelson and Kerikeri Research Centres in 1998 have shown that the unique combination of characters come true to form and are established and transmitted through succeeding asexual propagations.

‘51-1785’ flowers later than Hortl6A and requires specific tetraploid males to ensure adequate pollination.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows typical fruit of ‘51-1785’ on the vine

FIG. 2 shows typical fruit of ‘51-1785’ in side profile

FIG. 3 shows a stem end view offruit of ‘51-1785’

FIG. 4 shows a stylar end view of fruit of ‘51-1785’

FIG. 5 shows fruit of ‘51-1785’ in cross section

FIG. 6 shows flowers of ‘51-1785’

FIG. 7 shows the leaf of ‘51-1785’

Photographs of fruit were taken at the normal harvest date. Fruit skin colour may vary depending upon extent of exposure to direct sunlight.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The new tetraploid kiwifruit variety ‘51-1785’ is pistillate (female), and produces imperfect flowers, i.e. the flowers produce only sterile pollen and require a pollinizer to set fruit. TABLE OF CHARACTERISTICS Horticultural terminology is used in accordance with revised UPOV guidelines for kiwi. All dimensions in millimetres, weights in grams (unless otherwise stated). ‘51-1785’ PLANT (Measurements from samples of 10, unless stated) Plant: sex expression female flowers imperfect) Plant: ploidy tetraploid (2n = 2x = 116) Plant: vigour medium Young shoot: hairs present Young shoot: density of hairs medium Young shoot: type of hairs tomentose Young shoot: anthocyanin coloration of growing tip absent or very weak Young shoot: anthocyanin coloration of leaf axil absent or very weak STEM Stem: coloration of leaf axil absent or very weak Stem: diameter medium Stem: dormant bud diameter large Stem: color on upper side of shoot greyish- brown Stem: character of bark smooth Stem: hairs absent Stem: conspicuousness of lenticels conspicuous Stem: number of lenticels medium Stem: color of lenticels brown Stem: size of bud support medium Stem: visibility of bud (dormant canes) visible Stem: number of hairs visible on bud (dormant canes) many LEAF (Mature) Leaf: general shape of blade very broadly ovate Leaf: length 124 mm Leaf: width 151 mm Leaf: petiole length 103 mm Leaf: shape of tip of blade acute Leaf: shape of base of blade cordate Leaf: arrangement of leaf bases overlapping Leaf: puckering/blistering on upper side of blade medium Leaf: margin ciliate Leaf: green color of upper side of blade medium Leaf: glossiness of upper surface of blade medium Leaf: color of lower side of blade light green Leaf: glaucosity (lower side of blade) absent Leaf: hairs on petiole present Leaf: density of hairs on petiole medium Leaf: anthocyanin coloration on upper side of petiole medium FLOWER Inflorescence: predominant number of flowers three Pedicel: hairs present Pedicel: length of hairs very short Flower: number of sepals six or seven Flower: color of sepals green Flower: diameter (terminal or king flower when fully open) 51 mm (mean of 7 flowers) Flower: mean number of petals per flower 6 Flower: arrangement of petals overlapping Flower: petal shoulder present Flower: primary color of petals (when fully open) white Flower: type of coloration of petals bi-coloured Flower: filament color white Flower: anther color yellow Flower: attitude of styles semi-erect Flower: curvature of styles absent Flower: amount of hair on ovary dense Flower: colour of ovary white FRUIT Fruit: overall size 99 g Fruit: length 66 mm Fruit: width (max) 61 mm Fruit: width (min) 58 mm Fruit: core diameter (max) 12.4 mm Fruit: core diameter (min) 7.8 mm Fruit: locule number 30 Fruit: peduncle length 35 mm Fruit: peduncle width 3.9 mm Fruit: general shape globose Fruit: cross section at median circular Fruit: general shape of stylar end flat Fruit: shape of shoulder on stalk end squared Fruit: skin color at harvest (fruit still hard) medium brown Fruit: skin colour change during ripening absent Fruit: skin color at maturity for consumption medium brown Fruit: hairs present Fruit: density of hairs sparse Fruit: type of hairs pubescent Fruit: hair length short Fruit: concentration of hairs uniform Fruit: adherence of hairs to skin (when rubbed) weak Fruit: core diameter (at largest diameter) small Fruit: core shape (in cross section) transverse elliptic Fruit: core woody spike weak Fruit: prominence of core woody spike small Fruit: outer pericarp color at maturity for consumption yellow Fruit: inner pericarp col. (locules) at mat. for consumption yellow Fruit: core color at maturity yellow Fruit: sweetness (Brix level) at maturity for consumption 13.8% (11.4-16.2) Fruit: vitamin C content (45 fruit sample) 133 mg/100 g fresh weight (123- 140) mean of 5 plants, 3 val- ues, per plant. Fruit: seed colour at maturity (in flesh) blackish- brown Fruit: seed colour when dry dark brown EVENTS Time of vegetative budbreak medium (mid September) Time of beginning of flowering 8 Novem- ber (2004) Time of maturity for harvest (at nominated Brix level) last week of May (Brix 10%)

Observations were made on plants growing at HortResearch Te Puke, Te Puke, New Zealand. These plants had been grafted on to seedling rootstocks.

-   Rootstocks:

‘51-1785’ vines can be grown on the same rootstocks as ‘Hortl6A’. Rootstocks currently being used in New Zealand include A. deliciosa and A. chinensis seedlings, ‘Hayward’ and ‘Kaimai’ rooted cuttings.

-   Cropping:

Young vines of ‘51-1785’ crop heavily when young, and must be thinned directly after fruit set to reduce crop loads and to ensure fruit size is not compromised by over cropping. Vines of ‘51-1785’ begin to bear fruit in their second year from graft and can be expected to reach full capacity at about 5 years. Storage Life

The storage life of ‘51-1785’ fruit is 20 weeks at 0C, if stored in unventilated containers.

-   Other data:

Fruit size.—Data gathered from harvesting all fruit, from 6 vines, in May 2004. Mean fruit weight: 99.2 g maximum:  138 g minimum:   73 g Mean fruit number:  332 maximum: 1084 minimum:  102 Mean yield: 38.8 kg maximum:  14.1 kg minimum: 81.4 kg

-   Fruit flesh and skin color measurement:

Color chart.—RHS Colour Chart, the Royal Horticultural Society, London, 1966. Fruit: core color at harvest 150C to 150D Fruit: seed color (in flesh) 200A Fruit: seed colour (dry seed) 200C Fruit: skin color at maturity 199B Leaf: color of upper side (in mature leaf after petal fall) 147A Leaf: color of lower side (in mature leaf after petal fall) 148B Plant stem: color on exposed side 177A to 199A

-   Comparison to closet cultivar:

The distinctive characteristics of this new kiwifruit variety, described in detail below, were observed in 2005 at HortResearch Te Puke, New Zealand. The age of the plants was 6 years from grafting onto seedling rootstocks.

Comparison with similar varieties ‘Hortl6A’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 11,066) and ‘KI 89’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,497) shows that ‘51-1785’ may be distinguished as follows in Table 1. TABLE 1 Comparison with similar varieties Characteristic ‘51-1785’ Hort16A KI 89 Time of full bloom late November mid October early November Colour of fruit skin mid-brown yellow-brown reddish- brown Core diameter of fruit very small small medium General fruit shape globose ovoid cylindrical Fruit shape at stylar end rounded protruding slightly depressed Flesh color golden yellow yellow yellow- green Presence of lenticels on present not present not fruit skin present Visibility of lenticels on conspicuous not obvious not fruit skin obvious Mean soluble solids content 12.5-14% 14-19% 10.8- of ripe fruit 12.4% Mean dry matter at harvest 17.8% 18.3% 15.5- 17.2% Mean firmness at harvest 6.8 Kgf 4.6 Kgf 3.7 Kgf

Fruit of ‘51-1785’ is globose in shape with a rounded stylar end compared with the prominent stylar beak of ‘Hortl6A’. The flesh of ‘51-1785’ is golden yellow when ripe compared to the lighter yellow flesh of ‘Hort16A’ and the yellow-green flesh of ‘KI 89’ . The skin of ‘51-1785’ is a pale mid-brown colour, whereas the skin of ‘Hortl6A’ is yellow-brown and that of ‘KI 89’ is reddish-brown. The fruit of ‘51-1785’ has conspicuous, raised lenticels on the skin, ‘Hortl6A’ and ‘KI 89’ do not have raised lenticels.

The fruit of ‘51-1785’ is generally larger sized, has lower brix, lower dry matter content, and higher flesh firmness at harvest than Hortl6A. The fruit of ‘51-1785’ is generally shorter but of greater diameter than fruit of either ‘Hort16A’ or ‘KI 89’. claim: 

1. A new and distinct kiwi plant of the species A. chinensis substantially as herein illustrated and described. 